"Master Yin, long time no see," Xu Zimo said with a light smile.
"Not at all, not at all. Young Master Xu, please board the palanquin," Yin Wuhen quickly replied with a nod.
Although he didn't know Xu Zimo's exact relationship with the ancestor, since the ancestor had specifically asked them to look after him, he wouldn't dare show any disrespect.
Xu Zimo then got into the palanquin, which was swiftly carried by four Yakshas.
The rest of the group followed around the palanquin as they headed toward the Elden Lands.
The area surrounding the Elden Lands hadn't changed much.
Darkness and dark-aligned plants still covered the land, and the entire world here was shrouded in silence.
Halfway along their route, the sounds of fighting suddenly rang out from outside.
Xu Zimo lifted the curtain and looked out, seeing a group of dark creatures suddenly rushing out from the slopes on both sides.
These dark creatures weren't very tall and looked somewhat like skeletons.
They crawled on all fours, moved fast, and were very agile. Their entire bodies were pitch-black.
A thick dark aura radiated from them.
As the skeletons arrived, Yin Wuhen frowned slightly. After all, he had just broken through to the God Meridian Realm.
With a casual wave, he summoned a massive palm that slammed down, destroying all the skeletons.
Although there were many of them, coming one after another, their cultivation was simply too weak.
They couldn’t even withstand a single attack from Yin Wuhen.
Once the palanquin passed by, a trail of corpses was left behind.
"What’s going on?" Xu Zimo asked, looking at Yin Wuhen.
"Please don’t mind it, Young Master Xu," Yin Wuhen replied with a smile.
"These Elden Lands erupt a few times each year, and the undead inside become very aggressive. It’ll pass soon."
"An outbreak in the Elden Lands? Seems like even your Divine Gate can’t find peace," Xu Zimo laughed.
"You get used to it. Worst case, we go into seclusion again," Yin Wuhen said.
"None of the Ten Forbidden Grounds are simple."
As they spoke, the palanquin entered the Divine Gate. Yin Wuhen arranged for someone to look after Ye Feiyang.
Xu Zimo went alone to meet the God Emperor.
Passing through layers of concealed formations, Xu Zimo finally arrived at the palace where the God Emperor resided.
At this moment, the God Emperor seemed to have fully embraced a reclusive lifestyle. Without the Heaven’s Will, he couldn’t continue advancing his cultivation.
Now he spent his time fishing and gardening, living a leisurely life.
"You look pretty relaxed," Xu Zimo said.
"I’ve realized something," the God Emperor smiled and replied, "Without the Heaven's Will, I’ve found peace here, and my state of mind has improved quite a bit."
"Then I’m disturbing your peace," Xu Zimo said.
"No, no, not at all. Have you found a clue?" the God Emperor asked eagerly.
"According to the records in our clan, the Blood Race should be in the Nether Blood Sea," Xu Zimo said.
"The Nether Blood Sea? One of the Ten Forbidden Grounds?" the God Emperor frowned and thought for a moment. "That makes things troublesome."
These forbidden places were all extremely dangerous. When he was still at his peak, he didn’t fear them.
But now, with his current strength, entering any of the Ten Forbidden Grounds would almost certainly mean death, which is why he was so troubled.
"If the Blood Race can survive there, then there must be a way in. We'll take it one step at a time," Xu Zimo said.
"But the Nether Blood Sea is so vast. How do we even find the Blood Race?"
The God Emperor added, "Not to mention how dangerous it is in there. Even I wouldn’t be confident."
"You're lucky. I recently captured a member of the Blood Race. Maybe he can help," Xu Zimo said.
"Really?" The God Emperor's eyes lit up. He laughed, "Why didn’t you say so earlier? I was already prepared to never come back from the Nether Blood Sea."
"Is being a Grand Emperor really that important to you?" Xu Zimo asked. "Even without the Heaven's Will, you could still reach immortality."
"It’s different. With the Heaven's Will, I could journey to the Outer Heavens once more," the God Emperor said seriously. "I've never forgotten the hatred of losing the Heaven's Will all those years ago."
"You were just too reckless back then," Xu Zimo said with a smile and a shake of his head.
After chatting for a while, Xu Zimo decided to rest for the night and head to the Nether Blood Sea the next day.
Strictly speaking, the Nether Blood Sea wasn’t located on the Eastern Continent.
Between the Eastern and Southern Continents lies the Endless Sky Sea, which actually surrounds the Middle Continent.
The Eastern, Western, Southern, and Northern Continents are positioned around the Middle Continent.
The Nether Blood Sea lies within this Endless Sky Sea.
There are many legends about the Nether Blood Sea, but no one really knows its origin.
It’s said that back in the Legendary Era, people feared the ocean.
Especially the Endless Sky Sea, which stretched endlessly to the horizon, few dared approach it.
Later, as people began exploring the ocean, they discovered the Nether Blood Sea in a certain part of the Endless Sky Sea.
It’s said that no one who entered the Nether Blood Sea ever returned alive.
At that time, it was listed as one of the Ten Forbidden Grounds, ten of the most terrifying places on the continent.
Of course, as people's cultivation levels rose, these forbidden places became less dangerous to the Grand Emperors and those at the peak of martial power.
Although the Divine Gate rarely saw sunlight and had no concept of day and night, the people here still had a strong sense of time.
Around evening, Xu Zimo didn’t go to rest but continued studying Demon.
Just then, he suddenly heard explosions outside.
Walking out of his room, Xu Zimo saw various spiritual energies clashing in the distant sky, turning the black heavens into a swirl of colors.
Among the battle sounds, strange roars could faintly be heard.
Xu Zimo casually stopped a disciple of the Divine Gate and asked, "What’s going on?"
"Monsters from the Elden Lands are attacking our Guardian Formation," the disciple quickly explained. "They’ve been acting crazy lately, attacking almost every day. Previous outbreaks were never this serious!"
Watching the disciple rush off to help, Xu Zimo shook his head slightly.
It seemed the Divine Gate could handle it.
He returned to his room and slept peacefully through the night.
The next morning, when Xu Zimo woke up, the fighting had stopped.
But the atmosphere within the Divine Gate was very tense.
The God Emperor had disguised himself, looking like a completely different person, and came early to find Xu Zimo so they could head to the Nether Blood Sea.
Before they left, Yin Wuhen gave them a reminder.
"Ancestor, the situation outside the Elden Lands is currently unstable. The route we previously cleared is no longer safe. Why don’t you wait until the chaos dies down before leaving?"
"No need. I want to see what kind of monsters are causing trouble out there," the God Emperor replied with a cold snort.